Chicken Pox!

[Leah]

My doctor just said that I should NOT get a shingles vaccine because it is live and i have a compromised immune system :(

Leah

[tex]

I had a hunch that would be the verdict. Good for him for being on the ball.

And I hope that you can avoid catching it.

Tex

[Sheila]

My internist has been after me to get the shingles vaccine and I finally did it 2 weeks ago. I'm sure my MC never crossed his mind and I didn't realize it might not be a good idea.
Fortunately, I didn't have any reaction

When having surgery should those of us with MC take special precautions?

Sheila W

[Leah]

Thanks Linda. I had already bought the L-Lysine :) The sugar info is interesting

[tex]

Sheila,

The reason why it would be risky for Leah to receive vaccines that contain live virus is because she has selective IgA deficiency, not because of her MC.

It would be pointless for her to have the vaccine anyway, because since her immune system is not capable of producing normal amounts of antibodies, she can't build up an immunity to the virus in the vaccine, the way people with normal immune systems would do.

Probably the main risk that MC imposes during surgery is connected with the antibiotics that are always given before, during, and/or after surgery, and there's not much we can do about that, unfortunately, because we can't afford to risk getting an infection.

Tex

[Sheila]

Thanks, Tex. I had forgotten about Leah's IgA issues. I just checked my 23andme report on "selective IgA deficiency" and found that I have typical odds of a selective IgA deficiency on 2 versions and a "substantially higher odds of selective IgA deficiency, a variant located in the HLA region of the genome, an area which contains many genes that play an important role in the immune system and associated with risk for celiac disease and systemic lupus erythematosus."

Sheila W

[dfpowell]

Sheila,

I had those same results with 23andme, I was not sure what to make of the data. Overall those results fell into the category of average risk compared the population studied.

[MaggieRedwings]

I had the shingles vaccine with no reaction but still feel the effects of the shingles after all of this time. Got the pneumonia vaccine and got sick as a wet puppy. The doctor told me before getting it that no one ever got sick from it. Wrong again for the doc.

Love, Maggie

[wmonique2]

Leah,

How are you and Mike doing? Update us....

Monique

[Leah]

Hi Monique. Mike is still waking up each morning with a new area of his body affected :( Hands and feet are getting better though. He's still very tired and worn out. The incubation is two weeks, so I probably won't know if I will react until next week. Thanks for asking.

I got a Pneumonia vaccine last year to test whether I would make antibodies towards it...... nope. So far my other antibodies have stepped up, but I worry a bit about my future health. However, as of right now, I seem to be more healthy then most :)

leah

[Gloria]

I'm sorry to read about DH's Chicken Pox. Getting shingles has been one of my fears. DH and I got the vaccine and so far, so good.

I hope your husband recovers quickly without any residual problems. I hope you don't catch anything, either. Shingles pain can be the worst, as Maggie wrote.

Gloria

[JeanIrene]

Leah, I'm keeping my fingers crossed you won't get it! Hope Mike gets better very soon.

Jean

[Lesley]

Sorry Leah! I hope he gets better soon.

I had it at 18, and have several small bouts with shingles. I say small because they were small in area, not in pain.
I keep wondering if I should still get the vaccine. I think I have no made up my mind!

[wmonique2]

hope you don't get it, Leah...keeping you in my thoughts...Monique